Fantagraphics Blog

Time to hustle out and then back in the train car! And you heard right from that bum who jumped the train with you from here to St. Louie, cartoonist and hobo historian Tim Lane IS coming to the West Coast starting with Portland, just in time for First Thursday. On Thursday, December 4th from 6-10pm you can come get a copy of The Lonesome Go signed and sketched in at Floating World Comics. Floating World will also feature an art show of Lane's noir-drenched comic pages.  In addition to an art show and cartoonist signing, Lane has been going around the country getting…

Next Wednesday, November 26th Marguerite Van Cook and James Romberger will be holding a release party for their brand new graphic novel The Late Child and Other Animals at JHU Comic Books in NYC, 6-8pm. Wednesday is ALSO the first day it is available for sale at all comic book stores around the country. In this generational autobiography, the journeys and struggles over decades of this mother and daughter (Van Cook) are linked in five episodes that veer between lyricism, wry wit, and harrowing suspense.   So pop by JHU for this exploration in family and feminism. Get in on the fun and invite your…

This week, we're all about Miss Lasko-Gross! The sold-out edition of Escape from "Special" is available digitally now thanks to comiXology! It is the coming-of-age story of Melissa, who we first meet as a small child and depart from at the end of the book just before she enters high school. Drawn in black and white and washed in moody blues and full spectrum grays, Lasko-Gross's art, with its detailed backgrounds and expressive characters, exquisitely conveys the story's blend of humor (sometimes of the gross-out variety) and keenly observed insights. Miss Lasko-Gross, who has the sensibility of a love child of Linda Barry…

Michael Jordan: Bull on Paradeby Wilfred Santiago 200-page full color 5.75" x 7.5" hardcover • $24.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-711-6 Ships in: January 2015 (subject to change) — Pre-Order Now A thrilling, kinetic bio-epic about Michael "Air" Jordan, the greatest basketball player of all time and most influential athlete in history, from the creator of the acclaimed and best-selling 21: The Story of Roberto Clemente. This tour de force explores Jordan's public successes and private struggles, with the depth of Santiago's passion for his subject shining through on every full-color page. Jordan became a national celebrity at the age of 19, scoring the…

Casual fans of Fantagraphics may not be aware of the close association we have with Seattle's illustrious music scene. I was reminded of this relationship on Friday while attending a sold out Mudhoney and Tom Price Desert Classic concert. Nearly half the musicians on stage that night were former or current Fantagraphics staffers. What a great place to work!    We'll celebrate the legacy of Seattle's early music and comix on Saturday, November 29 as Fantagraphics Bookstore & Gallery hosts the book launch party for Sub Pop USA: The Subterranean Music Anthology, 1980 -1988. The book documents the formative years of Bruce…

  Jacques Tardi fans: we know you've been waiting ever so patiently for us to import more Tardi books over from Europe. Freshly translated, beautifully designed, and packed with action, Run Like Crazy Run Like Hell is a gritty adaptation of French crime novelist Jean-Patrick Manchette's book, Ô Dingos! Ô Châteaux! And now here it is. These advance copies, with their eye-catching, bright orange spot gloss titles popping out against the dense black and white artwork of Jacques Tardi, are instant can't-put-it-down page turners. We'll have more previews soon to appease your hungry eyes (but, in the meantime, you can…

"Mini comics are like the wild west of the comics world—in this lo-fi, DIY format—it’s anything—and everything—goes." – Benn Ray, Atomic Books Treasury of Mini Comics Vol. 2edited by Michael Dowers 848-page black & white with some color 5" x 6.25" hardcover • $29.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-807-6 Due to arrive in 2-4 weeks. Click on the thumbnails for larger versions; get more info, see more previews, and pre-order your copy here: http://www.fantagraphics.com/treasuryofminicomics2

This week's comic shop shipment is slated to include the following new title. Read on to see what comics-blog commentators and web-savvy comic shops are saying about them (more to be added as they appear), check out our previews at the links, and contact your local shop to confirm availability.     Aces High by George Evans, Al Feldstein, and Harvey Kurtzman 216-page black & white 7.25" x 10.25" hardcover • $29.99ISBN: 978-1-60699-784-0    "Does anyone draw airplanes better than the late great George Evans? Heck no! And the new Fantagraphics EC spotlight does this craftsman's work proud. Outstanding comics presented in rich detail…

Scene 1: The man named Thompson waits in the shadows for his target to enter his bedroom, then kills the man silently. The job finished, he leaves. The very next morning, he meets a new client for a new job. Scene 2: A sleek black car pulls up to the entrance of the asylum. One Michael Hartog emerges from the car, there to pick up Julie Ballanger, his new nanny. During the drive to her new home, she is questioned by Mr. Hartog on what she knows of him. Thus it begins in the latest crime novel adaptation out of…

The gorgeous Melrose Market Studios is hosting local businesses on Sunday, November 30th for a bazaar called The Seattle Collective. At this creative market and bazaar, Fantagraphics will be tabling and selling our classic and new classic comics directly to you! From 11-6pm browse the businesses while sipping some local coffee from Slate Coffee Roasters all day and some sumptuous cocktails from Still Liquor during Happy Hour time 4-6pm (the poster says 5 but we have the inside scoop!). Find only the best comics and graphic novels for your loved ones this holiday season (that includes YOU too!)   The…